Summer might be the period we expect massive blockbusters to decimate the box office, but compared to most summers,2024 seems a bit light on the massive sure-thing movies.Maybe that’s just because 2024 has already been full of huge spectacles, likeDune: Part Two,Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, andeven A24’sCivil War, but this year’s summer releases seem less like simply pushing out IP-driven products and more like studios taking some surprising swings for these summer months. Even franchise films likeFuriosa,Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes,Twisters, andAlien: Romulusseem like they could go either way, and whileDeadpool & Wolverineis likely to be one of the biggest releases of the summer, it’s wild to see a summer movie schedule with only a single superhero film coming soon.
Even among the blockbusters, this summer has a line-up of smaller films that have the potential to blow up in the coming months. Films likeI Saw the TV GlowbyJane Schoenbrun,Richard Linklater’sHit Man,Jeff Nichols’The Bikeriders,Yorgos Lanthimos’Kinds of Kindness,Sean Wang’sDìdi, andMaXXXine,could all be surprise hits.
This year’s summer movie schedule certainly has the films that are absolutely going to be hits (I’m looking at you,Despicable Me 4), but these next few months look like they’re full of possible surprises and less inevitable success than most years. As this exciting summer movie season starts up, let’s take a look at some of the films coming out that should get you excited for May-August.
‘The Idea of You’
Almost every teenage girl has dreamt of seeing their favorite pop star perform live and falling in love in real-time as the boybander gazes down at them from the stage. Now imagine they’re not actually looking at you but at your 40-year-old mother. This is the concept of the hotly anticipated Prime Video romance,The Idea of You. Divorced mom Solène (Anne Hathaway) attends Coachella with her teenage daughter to see her favorite pop band, August Moon. There, she bumps into the band’s British, pouty, and dreamy lead singer Harry Styles - I mean, Hayes Campbell (Nicholas Galitzine).
The trailer shows Hathaway and Galitzine’s star-crossed romance as not only is she a rat-faced nobody (as rat-faced as Anne Hathway can be) but she’s also older than him. Double scandal! Before you roll your eyes at yetanother movie adaptation of Harry Styles fan fiction, reviews following the film’s premiere at SXSW were almost unanimously positive. Hathaway’s talents don’t need to be defended as one of currentHollywood’s leading rom-com iconsandGalitzine is everywhere you look nowadays. So, whether you’re a mother in your 40s or 25 and still remember being 15 and discovering Wattpad for the first time,The Idea of Youis shaping up to be a fun, steamy romp. -Emma Kiely
The Idea of You
Solène, a 40-year-old single mom, begins an unexpected romance with 24-year-old Hayes Campbell, the lead singer of August Moon, the hottest boy band on the planet.
‘The Fall Guy’
‘The Fall Guy’ Review: Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt Lead a Moviemaking Lover’s Dream
Get ready as this action ride is here to kick off the summer blockbuster season early.
There are three truths in life; we all die, nothing worth achieving is easy, andfunnyRyan Goslingis the best Ryan Gosling. After his Oscar-nominated performance as Ken inGreta Gerwig’sBarbie(as well as a dynamite musical performance at this year’s Academy Awards), Gosling is once again being the silly boy that he is withDavid Leitch’sThe Fall Guy.
Based on theLee MajorsABC series from the ‘80s, this action comedy has Gosling taking on the role of veteran stuntman Colt Seavers, who is madly in love with director Jody Moreno (Emily Blunt), who also happens to be his ex-girlfriend. When the star of Jody’s next big movie, Tom Ryder (Aaron Taylor-Johnson), goes missing, it’s up to Colt to figure out what’s really going on, and hopefully win back Jody’s heart.
The action-comedy has already garnered rave reviewssince it premiered at SXSW, and Universal seemingly has a lot of confidence in the movie. This makes sense, considering that Gosling’s fame has reached even greater heights since last summer. -Nate Richard
The Fall Guy
Colt Seavers is a stuntman who left the business a year earlier to focus on both his physical and mental health. He’s drafted back into service when the star of a mega-budget studio movie, which is being directed by his ex, goes missing.
Will dumb teens ever quit playing occult games? Following in the path of the likes of 2014’sOuija,Tarotfollows a group of college friends who get way in over their heads when they start playing with a deck of tarot cards. What is supposed to be a foretelling of one’s future becomes an inescapable nightmare as the figures of the cards come to life to torment the friends. As they start to die in similar ways to their fortune, they must figure out how to stop the curse before they all succumb to its wrath.Tarotsports a recognizable cast of young performers including the MCU Spider-Man trilogy’sJacob Batalon, the standout of 2024’sMean Girls,Avantika, andPennyworth’sHarriet Slater. Tarot was directed and written by the duo of Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg who previously worked onExpend4ablesand 2018’sExtinction.- Emma Kiely
When a group of friends recklessly violates the sacred rule of Tarot readings they unknowingly unleash an unspeakable evil trapped within the cursed cards. One by one, they come face to face with fate and end up in a race against death.
‘Unfrosted: The Pop-Tart Story’
Despite his recent comments that movies are dead, it does seem kind of odd that we haven’t seenJerry Seinfeldin more movies over the years. After making one of the most popular and important sitcoms of all-time, Seinfeld’s only major movie role has been as…Barry B. Benson in the animated film/meme factoryThe Bee Movie. Yet Seinfeld stars in and makes his directorial debut with, yes,Unfrosted, a film extremely loosely based on the creation of the Pop-Tart. Who could’ve ever guessed that combination? Even wilder is the absurdly excellent cast Seinfeld has lined up for this film, includingMelissa McCarthy,Jim Gaffigan,Amy Schumer,Peter Dinklage,James Marsden,Bobby Moynihanas Chef Boyardee,Kyle Mooney,Mikey Day, andDrew Tarveras Snap, Crackle, and Pop, and most exciting,Hugh Grantas Tony the Tiger voice actorThurl Ravenscroft. If movies are dead, Seinfeld is certainly giving them a hell of a sendoff with this wild directorial debut. -Ross Bonaime
Unfrosted: The Pop-Tart Story
Michigan 1963, business rivals Kellogg’s and Post compete to create a cake that could change breakfast forever.
‘I Saw the TV Glow’
‘I Saw the TV Glow’ Review: You’ll Be Talking About This A24 Horror Film All Year
Jane Schoenbrun’s follow-up to ‘We’re All Going to the World’s Fair’ is an ambitious and compelling feature that is made to be dissected.
There is no movie you’ll see this year or any other quite likeJane Schoenbrun’sI Saw the TV Glow. The director’s follow-up to the already fantasticWe’re All Going to the World’s Fair, it takes us even further into the particulars of growing up, exploring questions of identity and culture with a sharp eye plus an absolutely killer soundtrack. The less that is known about it the better, but the basics are that it involves Owen (Justice Smith) and Maddy (Brigette Lundy-Paine) who become obsessed with a show called The Pink Opaque. When it is canceled, the two will separate and go in different directions before eventually being drawn back together as they try to come to terms with life outside of the show. Anything else that you need to know is best experienced by letting the film wash over you as Schoenbrun has created a vibrant vision that defies any and all expectations in spectacular fashion -Chase Hutchinson
I Saw the TV Glow
Teenager Owen is just trying to make it through life in the suburbs when his classmate introduces him to a mysterious late-night TV show — a vision of a supernatural world beneath their own. In the pale glow of the television, Owen’s view of reality begins to crack.
‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’
Few franchises are as high quality as the recent Planet of the Apes reboot and yet, the series is also massively underrated. The original trilogy, which consisted ofRise of the Planet of the Apes,Dawn of the Planet of the Apes, andWar for the Planet of the Apes, was rebooted back in 2011 and put the talentedAndy Serkisinto the shoes of the protagonist Caesar, an evolved chimpanzee who leads the ape army after the Simian Flu nearly decimates humanity.While Caesar’s story ended withWar for the Planet of the Apes,Kingdom of the Planet of the Apesbrings in a whole new cast of characters and is set 300 years following Caesar’s death.Kingdomcenters around Noa (Owen Teague), a chimpanzee hunter, a human girl named Mae (Freya Allan), and Proximus Caesar (Kevin Durand), who plays a bonobo who has twisted Caesar’s message and legacy for his own gain. Time will tell if this entry measures up to the previous three in quality. Serkis held much of the gravitas and emotional weight behind the three films and it’s safe to say that without him, the series wouldn’t nearly be as good. -Therese Lacson
Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes
Many years after the reign of Caesar, a young ape goes on a journey that will lead him to question everything he’s been taught about the past and make choices that will define a future for apes and humans alike.
After making two films about monsters that can’t see with theA Quiet Placefranchise,John Krasinskiis moving his directing talent to creatures that most people can’t see withIF. Krasinski also wrote and appears inIF, which tells the story of Bea (Cailey Fleming), a girl who can see people’s imaginary friends. When she also discovers that her neighbor Cal (Ryan Reynolds) can see them too, the pair team up to try and return the imaginary friends to their children. For what seems to be a lovely little kids film,IFhas a surprisingly stacked cast and team behind the camera. Leading the voice cast of monsters in Krasinski’s old friend/The OfficebossSteve Carell, as well asEmily Blunt(how’d he ever get her??),Matt Damon,Maya Rudolph,Jon Stewart,Sam Rockwell,George Clooney,Bradley Cooper,Blake Lively, and many, many more. Just as wild is Krasinski is working with two-time Oscar winnerJanuszKamińskibehind the camera, and Oscar-winning composerMichael Giacchino. With a massive amount of talent behind it, and the rare original big-budget concept aimed at kids,IFcould very well be one of the biggest surprise hits of this summer. -Ross Bonaime
A young girl who goes through a difficult experience begins to see everyone’s imaginary friends who have been left behind as their real-life friends have grown up.
‘Back to Black’
You know what the world is lacking? Music biopics! Next in the firing line of having their life, warts and all, brought to the screen whether they like it or not is jazz sensationAmy Winehouse.Sam Taylor Johnson’s predictably titledBack to Blackfollows the rise and fall of one of the most unique voices of 21st-century music withIndustry’sMarisa Abelaplaying the singer. The trailer promises a fairly straightforward retelling of Winehouse’s life from recording her first album in her early 20s to the roaring international success of her second album,Back to Black. On top of all this, the trailer advertises the movie as an insight into the “love story that inspired one of the greatest albums in the world” withJack O’Connellplaying Winehouse’s short-time husband Blake Fielder-Civil. The tragic and deeply upsetting life and death of Amy Winehouse is still fresh in the minds of music and movie lovers around the world. No one asked for this film andfrom the responses of British critics— no one wants it either.- Emma Kiely
Back to Black
It chronicles the life and music of Amy Winehouse, through the journey of adolescence to adulthood and the creation of one of the best-selling albums of our time.
‘The Strangers: Chapter 1’
Back in 2008, the simple premise of a couple having their isolated vacation home invaded by three masked killers resulted inone of the most terrifying horror movies of the decade.Bryan Bertino’sThe Strangersbrought the motivationless killer to a whole new level with the brutal acts of the masked trio who do it simply because “you were home.” 16 years and a forgettable sequel later,Renny Harlinis stepping up to reboot the series for the first of a planned trilogy.The Strangers Chapter 1will act as a prequel, promising to tell us “how the strangers became the strangers.” The trailer shows a very similar setup: a couple (Riverdale’sMadelaine PetschandFroy Gutierrez)celebrating their anniversary is staying in a remote cabin in a small town that is not the most welcoming. Just when they settle into the silence and tranquility, a group of masked intruders descends on the house; going from watching them shower to chasing them with axes. It’s one of the most anticipated horror releases of the year and hopefully, it can step in and fill the iconic creepy masks of its predecessor.- Emma Kiely
The Strangers: Chapter 1
A young couple drive cross-country toward a new beginning; unfortunately they have no choice but to stop in a secluded Airbnb in Oregon–and endure a night of terror against three masked strangers.
Nine years ago,George Millerdelivered an action blockbuster game-changer inMad Max: Fury Road. Considering the hell that the movie went through throughout its production, it is nothing short of a miracle that it turned out as great as it was. Despite the acclaim, and despite winning six Oscars,Fury Roadwasn’t a smash hit at the box office. Thankfully, its impact just couldn’t be ignored and this summer we’re finally being treated to the prequelFuriosa: A Mad Max Saga.
The Queen’s GambitstarAnya Taylor-Joytakes over the role of Imperator Furiosa fromCharlize Theron, as the movie chronicles the daring heroine’s origin story as she faces off against a villain known as Dr. Dementus (Chris Hemsworth). Everything we’ve seen from the movie promises a fiery, action-packed prequel that is sure to please franchise diehards. From the trailers alone,Hemsworth looks like he was born to play this kooky new villainand while she may have some big shoes to fill,Taylor-Joy seems to be more than capable of taking over for Theron.-Nate Richard
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
The origin story of renegade warrior Furiosa before her encounter and team-up with Mad Max.
